State Department

Code Green

Derek Chollet – Counselor of the Department of State

• Wrote a Sept. 2021 Newsweek article, ‘Expanding the Circle of Peace,’ in favor of the Abraham Accords

Naz Durakoğlu – Assistant Secretary of State (Legislative Affairs)

• Supports the IHRA definition of antisemitism: “The Department agrees that it is crucial that governments and public are able to recognize anti-Semitism in its many forms, traditional and contemporary so that we can call hate by its proper name and take effective action.”
• “Durakoğlu noted that by embracing the IHRA definition, the U.S. fully and always respects freedom of expression, opposes criminalizing speech, and protects the constitutional right of those in the United States to free speech. This, however, does not mean we let anti-Semitic speech and other forms of hate speech go unchallenged.'”
• Has traveled to Israel with the American Israel Education Fund, which is affiliated with AIPAC

Philip Gordon – Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President

• Views nuclear Iran as a threat and supports denuclearization
• Has called for “a deliberate and sustained effort by policymakers and opinion leaders in both countries” to repair the relationship and to avoid divisions “that no one who cares about Israel’s security or America’s values and interests in the Middle East should want.”
• “The main obstacle to Arab governments working openly with Israel without the agreement of the Palestinians stems from their own political weakness… [T]hey simply cannot afford to spend valuable political capital defending a rapprochement with Israel that most of their citizens would consider a betrayal of the still-popular Palestinian cause.” Washington Post, June 2017

French Hill – Congressional Representative to the 76th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations 

• Defended Israel following Amnesty International’s libelous “report” in January 2022
• Spoke in Congress in support of Iron Dome Funding

Brett Holmgren – Assistant Secretary of State (Intelligence and Research)

• Sees Iran as one of the biggest threats to America and its interests, as indicated in his testimony to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence during his confirmation hearing

Jessica Lewis – Assistant Secretary of State (Political-Military Affairs)

• She went to Israel with the American Israel Education Foundation

Victoria Nuland – Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs

• She declined to endorse the position of the JCPOA. “What is most urgent today is that Iran is breaking out — again — of its nuclear box. It is enriching at 20%, it is using these advanced centrifuges. We’ve got to get them back in the box on the nuclear front. But at the same time, we can and should be countering their malign regional influence”

Geoffrey Pyatt – Assistant Secretary of State (Energy Resources)

• He has emphasized cooperation in the Middle East, and future ties with Israel, Pyatt believes Israel stands as a pillar of stability in the region

Lee Satterfield – Assistant Secretary of State (Educational and Cultural Affairs)

• She supports the Gilman Scholarship which enables low-income Americans to study in Israel

Wendy Sherman – Deputy Secretary of State

• She supports a Two-State solution
• She claims to be committed to Israel’s security through the Iran deal and understands that Israel’s in a “tough neighborhood“

Michele J. Sison – Assistant Secretary of State (International Organization Affairs)

• She has defended Israel against the predation of the UN
• Expressed concern over human rights in Iran

Linda Thomas-Greenfield – Ambassador to the United Nations, Representative to the Sessions of the
General Assembly of the United Nations

• She unabashedly defends Israel to the UN and meets with Israeli leaders
• She is worried about antisemitism domestically and abroad

Julieta Valls Noyes – Assistant Secretary of State (Population, Refugees, and Migration)

• She has expressed concerns “about the efficiency, effectiveness, and neutrality of UNRWA.”

Code Yellow

Jon Finer – Deputy National Security Advisor

• Suggested that Trump “abandoned the long-standing U.S. commitment to Palestinian statehood“
• Wrote a biased article in the Washington Post about a Hamas attack in Gaza

Geeta Rao Gupta – Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues

• Was part of the Moriah Fund, which is an aid organization that prides itself on doing work throughout the world, but only targets a single country in particular for (alleged) civil rights issues – Israel
• Was Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF which has partnered with groups tied to terror and like the UN in general, has an anti-Israel bias
• No direct anti-Israel comments nor connections to the Iranian regime

Rashad Hussain – Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom

• As US Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation referred to the case of Sami Al-Arian, who pleaded guilty to aiding members of a Palestinian terrorist group, as “politically motivated”
• The White House originally claimed Hussain did not remember making that comment
• Following Politico’s reveal of the audio recording of the panel discussion, Hussain said, “I made statements on that panel that I now recognize were ill-conceived or not well-formulated.”
• The American Jewish Committee called him “an ally in the global fight against antisemitism” in a statement

Barbara A. Leaf – Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs

• Traveled to Israel and the West Bank to express “support for a two-state solution, deterring Iran’s aggressive regional activities, and support for Israel’s integration into the broader Middle East region“
• Stated that Iran “is a significant destabilizing actor in the region, more so now than say 15 years ago. And it does bump up right against profound US interests in the region.”

Barbara Lee – Representative to the 76th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations

• She was one of only 17 House members who voted against a resolution condemning the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
• Introduced pro-Israel bill with the support of pro-Israel organizations
• She is pro Two-State Solution
• She supported a bill making US aid to Israel conditional on a Two-State Solution
• She has been part of delegations sent to Israel with and without J-Street

Donald Lu – Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs

•  He sent a cable to the State Department’s headquarters in Foggy Bottom titled “Azerbaijan’s discreet symbiosis with Israel.”

Mary Catherine Phee – Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs

•  She was a part of the Moriah Fund, an aid organization that prides itself on doing work throughout the world, but only targets a single country in particular for civil rights issues – Israel
• She was also Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF which, like the UN overall, has an anti-Israel bias
• No direct anti-Israel comments nor Pro-Iranian connections

Jalina Porter – Deputy Spokesperson for the Department of State

•  She says that there are problems with the Iran deal and that time is running out
• She supports a Two-State Solution

Jeffrey Prescott – Deputy to the Ambassador to the United Nations

• He helped manage the U.S. response to the emergence of ISIS and negotiations over the Iranian nuclear deal. Advocates for a return to U.S. multilateralism to confront nuclear issues
• Prescott urged Senators to apply pressure to Iran to deter malign behavior but to remain committed to the nuclear deal as a vehicle for cooperation. “Dear Senators: Push Back Against Iran, but Not at the Expense of the Nuclear Deal,”

Ned Price – Spokesperson for the Department of State

• He has stated, “Iran should submit themselves to the limits on its nuclear program, and that Iran submitting to the JCPOA and U.S. re-entering would be beneficial to national security.”

Code Red

Hady Amr – Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Israel-Palestine

• Distorted facts in this article attacking Israel after the failed Oslo Accords.
  • Falsely claims Sharon outmaneuvered all the negotiators with the direct intention to sabotage peace.
• When the Trump administration unveiled its proposed peace deal, Amr co-wrote an article declaring that it should be scrapped in favor of focusing on a deal with Hamas
• Declared he was “inspired by the Palestinian intifada”
• In interview, while running the Brookings Institute Center in Doha, Qatar, Hady said he wanted to “engage with” Hamas, Hizballah, and the Muslim Brotherhood
• Listed as a fundraiser tied to Islamic terrorism
• The Biden administration is not planning to appoint a special envoy for the Israeli-Palestinian peace process
  • The issue will be handled mostly by the State Department, which means Amr could have significant influence

Sarah H. Cleveland – Legal Adviser of the Department of State

• Signatory on an open letter to the Israeli government opposing the annexation of “Palestinian” land
• Wrote an article about alleged “human rights violations” that was published in Cambridge journals

Suzy George – Chief of Staff

• Signed a J-Street letter faulting Israel for the lack of progress in a two-state solution

Sarah Margon – Assistant Secretary of State (Democracy, Human Rights and Labor)

• Claims she firmly opposes BDS movement
• She has stated in the past that US-targeted attacks against Iranian threats are viewed as illegal
• She has made various statements about Israeli Westbank settlement territory and supports a two-state solution.

Julie Sawyer – Director for Israel-Palestine

• She worked closely under Martin Indyk, who was a US Ambassador to Israel who pushed policy that worked against Israel.
• She worked closely with Hady Amr and Indyk in Gaza

Uzra Zeya – Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights

• Compiled research for a book that argues that “the Israel lobby has subverted the American political process to take control of U.S. Middle East policy” by establishing a secret network of “dirty money” PACs that bribe and extort congressional candidates into taking pro-Israel positions.”
• Posed with Dr. Al-Issa who is extremely antisemitic in his sermons from Muslim World League (funded by Saudi Arabia)

Tamara Cofman Wittes – Assistant Administrator (USAID)

• Vocally supported Qatar when they donated millions of dollars to the Brookings Institute
• She voiced disagreement with the Abraham accords and scolded the UAE and Egypt for making peace
• Cofman Wittes had retweeted an article that called the Abraham Accords misogynistic, a “triumph for authoritarianism,” and a “new naksa” (Arabic for “setback”).

Code White

Salman Ahmed – Director of Policy Planning

• Authored an article on Iran Policy

Elizabeth M. Allen – Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs

John Bass – Under Secretary of State (Management)

Zehra Bell – Director for Iraq and Syria

• Studied briefly at Hebrew University

Rena Bitter – Assistant Secretary of State of Consular Affairs

Tom Carnahan – Representative to the 76th Session of the
General Assembly of the United Nations

Marcia Bernicat – Director General of the Foreign Service

Lisa Carty – United States Alternate Representative to the Sessions of the United Nations General Assembly

• Served as Regional Refugee Coordinator at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)
• But expressed support for “relentless U.S. insistence on transparency, accountability, and reform, as well as unwavering resistance to anti-Israel bias” in her testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Karen Donfried – Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs

Cindy Dyer – Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons

C. Evans – Director for Political-Military Affairs and Yemen

Sim Farar – Representative to the 76th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations

Jose Fernandez – Under Secretary of State (Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment)

Rufus Gifford – Chief of Protocol, Office of the Secretary and Deputy Secretaries

• “To me, for all of the sort of narratives surrounding Israel that are out there — which I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about and talking about simply just because I’ve done a lot of work with the community over the years — you don’t have any sense of it until you go and meet the people, talk to the community leaders and understand how rich this country is but also just how complex it is,” he said, “and how the problems which American politicians very often make sound sort of simple to solve are just much, much, much more complex than we have any understanding of.” –Jewish Insider, December 2020

Rebecca Gonzales – Director of the Office of Foreign Missions, Office of Management

Josh Harris – Director for North Africa

Bonnie Jenkins – Under Secretary of State (Arms Control and International Security Affairs)

• Reaffirmed her commitment to “maintaining Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge, are upheld” and acknowledged the threat of Iran in a Senate testimony
• Has not made any policy statements towards Iran, has a significant lack of involvement with Iran considering her position, and readily defers important questions
• “As for what [putting Iran] ‘back in the box’ means, I would defer to others like [US Special Envoy for Iran] Rob[ert] Malley and others who are working on the issue exactly what that means. I understand the question and watching and seeing what’s happening in terms of the enrichment, but how we specifically define that, I would prefer to defer to others on that,” she said in August 2022, Israel Hayom reported
• Worked to uphold an already existing framework of international proliferation law to limit the access to nuclear materials for nations like Iran that doesn’t seem to have worked

Shanthi Kalathil – Coordinator for Democracy and Human Rights

Ella Lapin – Senior Advisor to the Deputy NSA

Max Martin – Director for Lebanon and Jordan

Brian P. McKeon – Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources

• He has “no intention” of voting to move the U.S. Embassy out of Jerusalem

Monica Medina – Assistant Secretary of State (Oceans and International, Environmental and Scientific Affairs)

Brian A. Nichols – Assistant Secretary of State (Western Hemisphere Affairs)

John Nkengasong – Ambassador-at-Large for Global Health Diplomacy and Global AIDS Coordinator

James C. O’Brien – Coordinator for Sanctions

Sam Parker – Director for Iran

Elizabeth H. Richard – Ambassador-at-Large for Counterterrorism & Coordinator for Counterterrorism

Todd D. Robinson – Assistant Secretary of State (International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs)

Annie Rohrhoff – Director for Counterterrorism

Gentry O. Smith –  Assistant Secretary of State (Diplomatic Security)

• Claims to have witnessed the signing of the peace agreement between Israel and Jordan

Mallory Stewart – Assistant Secretary of State (Arms Control, Verification and Compliance)

Alaina B. Teplitz – Assistant Secretary of State (Administration)

Ramin Toloui – Assistant Secretary of State (Economic and Business Affairs)

• Participated in a State Dept. celebration of US-Israel economic ties

Beth Van Schaack – Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice

Anne Witkowsky – Assistant Secretary of State (Conflict and Stabilization Operations)